Old Cubs, New Tricks

[Katse]

From where she stood, Taugadi was getting the same view as Taka. She held her breath as the fight took place. She didn't understand why Mala had to not only attacked Mufasa, but their queen! It only confirmed of the strange, evil vibe she had felt from the young lioness.

Taking a worried look at Taka, then back at the fight, she sighed inwardly, glad for it to finally be over and Mala had given up. She glanced again at Taka, out of nervousness moving a bit closer to him. She heard a growl escape him, and was a bit suprised at him, but didn't show it. Only her ears flicked back for a moment, her brow furrowing even more. "Do you think they're all right," she asked timidly after her silence.

[Ashara]

Taka looked from the ground to Taugadi, and said,"Most likely. Mother wouldn't let the fight get too intense." He hoped what he had said was true. Naturally, he would be heart broken if Mala was harmed. But the rogue lioness should be able to handle it herself. She had grown up on her own, and had fought off many other beasts.
"Do you want to get a closer look?"Taka asked.

[Katse]

Taugadi bit her lip, thinking over if she'd like to go or not. She didn't want to be around if there was still tension. Thinking about it more, she realized Taka was right. Uru wouldn't let another fight brake out and there were more lions there defending then opposing. Looking a Taka and mustering a smile, though it wasn't a very good one, she replied, "sure."

[Ashara]

Taka nodded at her response, and brought his lanky body towards the stone steps. "I haven't seen you much today." he said in an attempt to form a conversation. Of course he hadn't seen her...he was with Mala. Taka did love Taugadi,though. Perhaps more than Mala at times.

[Katse]

Taugadi didn't waste any time in following Taka. She trotted after him, catching up with him in no time. She kept in pace with him at his right. At Taka speaking to her, a faint smile formed. "I've just been hanging around," she said with a shrug of her shoulders, "decided to let everyone do their own thing and take it easy for a while. What have you been up to 'til now?"

[Ashara]

"Talking to Mala...meeting the new lions. The usual...." He said, bumping his shoulder into hers. He could barely see his mother and the others from the ground.

[Scorplion]

Uru dared not take her eyes off of Mala. She could see the lioness's muscles bunched tightly beneath fur and skin. A false move now and Mala could take one of them out.
"Mufasa." She said calmly, still not looking away from her enemy. "You cannot rule with brute force alone.You may not kill what you wish simply because it displeases you. We cannot allow oursleves to sink to this... beast's level. We stand for so much more than that."
Uru's gaze was hard and flat as she looked into Mala's eyes. "However, if I see you near either of my sons again I will consider it a threat to their personal safety and tear you to pieces. Do we understand one another?"

[Ashara]

Taka marched on, Taugadi safely at his side. Thoughts flashed through his head concerning Mala and Mufasa. What had Mala gotten herself into this time? Had Mufasa attacked her? And why was Mother there?

[Melody of Scar]

Mala's lip raised in a threatening snarl, her head dropping. She tensed mightily then suddnely relaxed, even going as far as to let a smirk form on her lips.

"I understand you perfectly. However, understand this." She stood and turned to leave, her parting shot sliding like silk off her tongue. "If you so much as lay a claw on me, it may not be you tearing a body to pieces."

Mufasa roared and jumped forwards, but Mala had taken off like a cheetah and was nothing more than a brown streak of lightning running into the distance - towards the Elephant Graveyard. Mufasa stared after her with rage still brimming in his eyes and turned furiously to Uru, obviously fighting to control his voice.

"She'll come back to kill us, mother! Do you not see that? She will come back and murder us all in our sleep..." He brought a paw to the still bleeding marks on his cheek and his voice calmed down, his eyes averted from the queen's. "I know she will. She's proven that to us."

[Scorplion]

Uru managed to stand tall to the last moment. Once she saw the lioness run off, her body relaxed, though her legs still felt shaky beneath her.
She listened calmly to her son. And she certainly understood where he was coming from. Mala was not to be underestimated. She would have to speak with Ahadi about what was to be done with her.
"Crazy she may be, Mufasa, but Mala is not a fool. She would not dare make such an open attack." Uru tried to smile at her cub, she really did. But seeing those bloody marks across his face... she couldn't.
"Come, my son. I will have one of the lionesses clean your wound. And I must talk with your brother."
She nudged her son gently before turning her head slightly to the left, looking into the grasses. Which was precisely where Femi was crouched, shaking and scared by what she had seen. "And come out, Femi. Any idiot could see you hiding there."

[Melody of Scar]

Mufasa closed his eyes as Uru licked his cheek and winced, then nodded slowly and began to walk towards Pride Rock. His head was still slightly bowed and he was still shaken about the past events. He could only manage to look at Taka and Taugadi before he hurried past them and broke into a run towards the mighty throne of Pride Rock, not wanting to be questioned by either of them or tended to by the lionesses.

He bounded up the rocky slope and into the main cave, which was finally empty as the rest of the pride had woken up and filed out to tend to the various chores they had. Mufasa moved like a golden shadow through the darkness until he was in the furthest corner and collapsed, burying his face in his paws and closing his eyes tightly.


Mala had run until she was far from Uru and Mufasa and the damned image of Taka walking with Taugadi. She was jealous of the other lioness - she actually got to see Taka freely, and Mala had to sneak in her time with the young prince. It was bothersome to see the two together... She felt like she was being replaced.

None of the hyenas standing at the border dared to question or move against the enraged lioness that shot between them, and Mala didn't stop to greet them. She headed straight for her home, the giant skull of the biggest elephant to ever collapse in the graveyard. It was near enough to the border where the hyenas could watch as their strange sister played out her rage.

Mala stood shaking between the beast's tusks, her red eyes flashing with rage. Through the opening before her she could see her father's skull grinning back at her - the Hyon King, he had been called. He had been the lion king of the hyenas. It was a stupid nickname, but the pups always said it.

Mala bared her teeth at the dead head and hissed out quietly, "Where are you now, O mighty one?" Her claws slid out of their sheaths as she stalked forwards, imagining the white-furred face of her father still covering his bleached skull. She desired nothing more than to rip his grinning ego to shreds and let the dust bury his bones, but at the same time she couldn't bring herself to.

So, she attacked the next best thing.

With a bellow of anger she jumped forwards and sank her claws into the mighty elephant skull. She roared and howled as her claws dug long lines into the pale tusk beneath her vengeful paws - a feat of strength that sent the adults watching her fleeing with terror. Dozens of eyes watched as she spend long minutes shredding into it until she finally grew exhausted and collapsed to the ground, her eyes staring into the grinning face of her father. She growled and resheathed her claws into her sore paws before letting her eyes close.

She would find a way to get back at them if it took her entire life. She would see Mufasa and Uru killed... And Taugadi, too. Even if it killed her to do it.

[Katse]

((Dang, you're good.))

Taugadi's brow furrowed as she watched and felt the hatred between the Queen, the Prince, and the "Outsider." Just as quickly as they had gotten there, Mufasa had dashed off towards Priderock. Taugadi had merely gotten a glimpst at the heir, seeing crimson staining his gold. She cringed at the sight. There was indeed a fight and Taugadi could already guess who had marred Mufasa's face, though she didn't like the thought much.

Just as quickly as Mufasa had left, Taugadi could see the form of Mala headed in the opposite direction. Her ears flickered back, a soft sigh escaping her. She couldn't understand how so much malevolence could come from one lioness and so quickly, too. Was it the way she lived with the hyenas? Did something happen that Taugadi didn't know of that made Mala act the way she did? Was it Taugadi that did something wrong? She remembered of their cubhood days, when Mala wasn't so full of hatred, but those days were gone like a distant dream. All Mala was now was hate. Taugadi knew the word for such an attribute, though never uttered it aloud. Mala was "Zira."

[Melody of Scar]

(( Not nearly as good as you. ^_~ Anyone up for bringing Ahadi in? Or Sarabi? It'd be nice to have them. ))

[Scorplion]

((I second that motion, Katse. MoS is good. ^_~ And so are you. XD
And I would be Ahadi, but since I'm already roleplaying as Queen Uru, I think someone else should have the role of king.))

Femi had been hiding the whole time. And she wanted to hide forever. What kind of place was this, that lions could wander in even if they weren't part of the pride?
She took a shaky breath and pressed herself ever lower to the warm earth. Her father would never have allowed such a thing to occur. How could he have left her here?
Wanting to cry out in anger, but not daring to risk attention to herself just yet, Femi unsheathed her claws and raked them across the dirt as she thought.
Queen Uru was a fool. Mala was not a young cub that needed to be chastised. She - well, Femi didn't know what she was really. The number of times she had even seen the lioness could be counted on one paw.
And when Mala had spotted her back there. Femi had thought her blood was frozen.
That was power.
Femi raised her head slowly - Uru and Mufasa were already gone. She wasn't quite tall enough to see if anyone else was coming her way but she decided to take her chances.
Without taking a look back, Femi took off toward the direction she had seen Mala go. She wanted to be strong. She wanted to be respected, as she once had. Perhaps Mala could give her that. It was obvious that this place could not...

[Melody of Scar]

(( You two flatter me... *blush* <3 You both're good! ^__^ ))

Mala slowly sat up as the excited yelping of the pups increased in volume. She winced and flexed one of her paws, standing slowly to move into the elephant's skull and hide from her family until night came.

She had to think and plan carefully. She wasn't going to find a way to get to Uru and Mufasa simply by charging in recklessly and attacking them. She needed to exploit the hyenas and find some way inside, some way to get close to the royal family.

And then the solution ran quite convinently into her paws.

A large group of hyenas stood at the border, snarling and bristling. They didn't know who Femi was, but she was a stranger and fast approaching. Mala strided slowly up the slope leading into the Pridelands, pausing at the border.

It was that brown lioness who had followed her earlier, before she had turned against Uru. Her ears flattened and she growled quietly but she didn't move to attack her. Her paws were too sore to be smacking anyone around, anyways.

She remained still and quiet, watching the approach of the lioness. The hyenas remained clustered around her, snarling and barking threateningly at the stranger. Mala's mind was working a mile a minute, meanwhile. Why was she here? Had Uru sent her for some reason? And then another thought crossed her mind.

She could be useful...

[Mizani]

Originally posted by Melody of Scar
(( Not nearly as good as you. ^_~ Anyone up for bringing Ahadi in? Or Sarabi? It'd be nice to have them. ))

((ooc: I wouldn't mind RP'ing Sarabi^^))

Originally posted by Merra'sSieria
((Yay Scorplion! <33))

Merra yawned.
"They are SO SLOW" She muttered under her breath. "You'd think it was a celebration of slowness parade" She left her perfectly sorted bugs to run/fly away in peace.

"True that" Mteuzi smirked, her tail lashing back and forth. Two lions to her right caught her attention, and she recognized them to be Prince Mufasa, and Mala. Wow, Mala had actually torn herself from Taka. But it was probably not as surprising, since Mala's favourite pass time other then clinging to Taka like a leech, was annoying Mufasa. And she was doing a good job of it to, the eldest Prince looked ready to slit Mala's throat. She really didn't get what was so enjoyable about it, but Mala seemed to live off it. Luckily Queen Uru intervined, her authority absolute; even if Mala didn't respect her, Taka did.
The situation now resolved, Mteuzi lifted her head to the sky. It was a blank canvas, except for an eagle that streaked through the clouds, flinging its feathered body through the blue abyss. For a few fleeting seconds, the adolescent lioness envied the bird. It could go any where, but she knew it was a creature just like her, and it wasn't very different to the life that didn't know that beauty of flight.

Looking back at her friend, and then at the hunting party, the closeness of the group aproaching snapped her out of her daze. A strange feeling overcame Mteuzi's body, as an urge to hunt swelled up like a welt, and perhaps it was also mixed with blood lust. Blood lust was something all carnivores suffered. Even more so with folds of animals that humans kept. Though Pridelanders knew to keep away, the groups of prey was often very tempting. Her mother had told her about lions who had been overcome with bloodlust, and it still sent chills up Mteuzi's spine. But the hunt was coming soon, and the urge would soon go down, and it was lucky she was in the Pridelands where bounty was plentiful.

[Ashara]

Taka stopped abruptly when he saw Mufasas marled face. Who could have done that? Immediately he knew. Had Mala been harmed? Fear gripped at his throat, and he could barely utter,"C'mon" before he took off towards the Elephant Graveyard.
He was there in what seemed like seconds, almost completely forgetting of Taugadi. The hyena growled at his presence, but quieted as soon as he hissed, "Shut up, you idiots!"

[Scorplion]

Uru let Mufasa go. He needed time alone and his wound was not so deep that it was cause immediate problems.
She had planned to speak to Taka but it looked as though he had gone off by himself again. Uru sighed. The talk would have to wait. For now, she had a hunt to organize.
((I'm going to do Femi's post here to, so I won't have to double post. Hope that's okay.))
---
Femi had no ability to track whatsoever. She could not pick out Mala's scent among the million others among the grass. But she knew the general direction that the lioness had run off in. And soon enough, Femi found herself in a graveyard.
She shivered and fought the urge to run. There were hyenas here, that much she could smell.
"But where is Mala?" Femi turned around in a circle and tried desperately to catch her scent, or see a pawprint. Anything. Had Mala gone in there? Or had she gone around the entire place?
Suddenly, Femi heard someone else approaching. She quickly hid behind a rock not to far from the graveyards entrance and watched as Taka emerged into the clearing.
'He'll know the way to Mala.' Femi thought and watched as Taka walked past the hyenas inside without so much as a scratch.
Now all she had to do was figure out a way in too...

[Kovu The Lion]

(( Tekua wants to get in this stuff so bad Anyone seen Utora around :E? I think my Charry is still frozen with hers ...))

[unregistered user]

!OOC! : Dude, I am so uber sorry. I've been so bluety museless for the past week and I run like 8 RPGs, and all are major parts so it's like, major uber brain fart. XD Sorry for being selfish Glad to see new folkies! ^_^;

_________________________

Umufi smiled at Tekua. So the decision was up to good old Umufi now eh?

Well, maybe we could check out some of the less 'travled' areas around here. See if anything new is stirring up and such. I hear dark things are lurking around. Oh ho, it'd be some fun to get involved with that!

Umufi got a little over excited. He loved getting into fights, of course when it wasn't with someone he cared about.
Careful Umufi, you might endager your friends life.
His smile did not fade, but it wasn't so bright as his rough and scalely textured pads beat upon the hot dirt, and bent the grass upon his path.
Give him credit though Umufi. He's young like you, and an outsider. Chances are he's been in a hell of a lot mroe scrapes, and a little bit of fun on the outside would be more natural than anything else!
Umufi reassured himself, but he was stuck between two thoughts; he could be reassuring himself to get his way, or: he could be wrong and Tekua might not be adept in battle.
Don't judge. It's what got you lost from your brothers to start off with.
Umufi agreed on that thought, and decided to allow this 'search for danger' to present itself with a more, accepted outlook.

Snapping his agile tail behind him, he looked too and fro upon the sun soaked terra.
The grass sighing and kissing it's backside in the very rare but pleasent breeze, and the sounds of Tekua's footsteps beside him.
A friend. Umufi knew that this wasn't something you found around the corner on an average day, and the sound of Teuka's presence was comforting.
Tossing his head so his few strands of adolescent mane popped up and down, he looked upon Tekua and grinned walking a little fancy like.
I'd like to get my claws under the jaws of an outsider!
He snapped vigoursly, but plafully all together.

Ahh but you know. I might be in over my head here, heh. What do you think Tekua?
Umufi had completely forgotten about his entrance upon these lands, and the rather rude greeting from Taka and Mala. All was well within his spirits. But it was very artificall. So much haunted Umufi's spirits that it was inevitable to say that he may never be truly happy.